IT'S GO TIME!

In order to cross over to the Bahamas, a few things need to align.  The boat and crew need to be ready, the provision list needs to be completed, and the weather needs to be just right.  Well, that alignment is about to occur at 0400 tomorrow morning, Thursday November 12^th.  We have been working hard to get everything ready and have been closely watching several different weather forecasts.  A good “weather window” only comes around once in a while so when it does, we need to take advantage of it.

We will likely have a restless night tonight contemplating tomorrow’s crossing.  It is a 54 mile open ocean crossing from Lake Worth (Palm Beach) inlet to the Bahama Bank.  Although once we reach the bank we will still have another 45 miles to go before we stop for the night, the most worrisome part will be behind us.  The open ocean between Florida and The Bahamas is many thousands of feet deep and is home to the Gulf Stream.  The Stream is a river like current within the ocean and flows northward at about 3 miles per hour.  Any wind out of the north will buck against the current and make for a very bumpy (and possibly dangerous) ride.  Once we reach the bank, the water shallows to only in the range of 20’ deep and becomes much friendlier.  The forecast for tomorrow is for light winds from the south.  Nice!

Tonight we are anchored in Lake Worth (Palm Beach), only a short distance from access to the ocean.  There are many other boats anchored here and we expect that there will be a small parade of boats leaving tomorrow morning.  During the “crossing”, we will be out of sight of land for about 25 miles and will be comforted by the sight of other boats on the horizon.  It’s time for bed now.  0400 comes quite early.

Starting to provision for the Bahamas at Palm Coast